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Using Signal Transduction Enzyme Inhibition as an Effective Method for the Isolation of Anticancer Compounds from an Acid Mine Waste Extremophilic Actinomycete PS45A-4 Abstract Microbes isolated from an acid mine waste lake in southwestern Montana have proven a rich source of microorganisms. Berkeley Pit Lake, part of the largest Superfund site in North America, is an acid mine waste reservoir rich in toxic metals. Microbes isolated from the surface waters down to the basal sediment 800 feet below the surface have been grown using a series of physicochemical conditions. The organic and aqueous extracts of these microbial cultures have been tested for different types of biological activity using a variety of bioassays. These assays include assessment of antimicrobial activity against a suite of pathogenic bacteria and fungi, including Pneumocystis carinii, causative agent of PC pneumonia. Extracts are also evaluated as potential enzyme inhibitors of two different signal transduction enzymes that have been implicated in the development and/or metastasis of certain cancers and various autoimmune diseases. These enzymes, matrix metalloproteinase-3 and caspase-1 have been implicated in tumor development and metastasis. Compounds isolated on the basis of their enzyme inhibitory potential are sent to NIH for evaluation against 60 human cancer cell lines. My attempts to isolate and characterize a bioactive metabolite isolated from a deep sediment actinomycete will be described. Biography
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